Holden Holding On: Will Possibly Be Imported from North America

General Motors recently announced that they will be ceasing production of Holden vehicles in Australia. With plants being closed by the end of 2017, a strong loss of jobs, and another blow to the Australian automotive industry, things might seem bleak as far as Holden is concerned. But have no fear! Holden’s company blog basically shot down the rumors by saying, “No. Holden is here to stay.”

They even released a commercial employing celebrities to get the message out that even after production ends in 2017, Holden will remain in Australia through importation – though it seems this may not exactly be welcome news for many who have taken to the internet to vent their frustrations over losing yet another “Made in Australia” brand (Ford is also ceasing Australian production). While scrolling through, it appears that Australians are upset about the loss of jobs and are unhappy about buying vehicles which aren’t produced in their home-country, some even using the term “sell-out.”

While General Motors has yet to release details on whether models like the Commodore and Ute (both Australian-built models) will continue to be produced and imported, it’s obvious that our friends in Australia continue to crave high-powered, rear-wheel-drive muscle cars. GM also hasn’t spilled the beans on whether or not Holden Special Vehicles (think GTO and G8) will remain.

As it stands, the Chevrolet Caprice PPV police car and the SS are exported from Australia into the United States but come 2015, North American plants will take over production under the forthcoming Zeta II platform.